#retirement-savings
Retirement Savings
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Section 457(b) and 457(f) Deferred Compensation Plans: How Nonprofit, Government, and School Employees Stack Pre-Tax Savings on Top of a 403(b) or 401(k)
A detailed 2026 guide to Section 457(b) and 457(f) deferred compensation plans — how public-sector and nonprofit employees can stack a 457(b) on top of a 403(b) or 401(k) for up to $65,000 in deferrals, when the special three-year catch-up reaches $49,000, and how 457(f) vesting can trigger a tax bomb under Section 409A.
Section 457(b) and 457(f) Deferred Compensation Plans: Stacking Pre-Tax Savings on a 403(b) or 401(k)
A 2026 guide to Section 457(b) and 457(f) plans — how public-sector and nonprofit employees can defer up to $49,000 pre-tax by stacking a 457(b) on a 403(b), and how nonprofit executives use 457(f) without triggering the substantial-risk-of-forfeiture tax trap.
Section 7702B Qualified Long-Term Care Insurance: Age-Indexed Deductions, Hybrid Life-LTC Policies, and Section 1035 Exchanges
Section 7702B sets the federal rules that decide whether a long-term care policy delivers deductible premiums, tax-free benefits, and tax-free 1035 exchanges. This guide breaks down the 2026 age-indexed deduction limits, the $430 per-diem cap, hybrid life-LTC mechanics, and the planning patterns that move trapped cash value into care coverage without recognizing gain.
Form 5498 Decoded: The IRA Tax Form You Never File but Should Read Line by Line
Form 5498 reports IRA contributions, rollovers, Roth conversions, and the December 31 fair market value, and arrives in late May after you have already filed. A box-by-box reading of the fourteen lines, how to reconcile each with Forms 1099-R, 8606, and 5329, and the specific traps that trigger CP2000 notices and the 6% excess-contribution penalty.
Qualified Charitable Distributions in 2026: A $111,000 Tax-Free Path From IRA to Charity
A complete 2026 guide to Qualified Charitable Distributions — the IRS-sanctioned strategy that lets retirees age 70½ and older route up to $111,000 from an IRA directly to a qualified charity without recognizing the distribution as taxable income.
Section 415(c) Annual Additions Limit for 2026: The $72,000 Cap Explained
Section 415(c) caps total 2026 annual additions to a defined contribution plan at $72,000 — covering employee deferrals, employer matches, and after-tax contributions. The math behind the mega backdoor Roth, the catch-up rules that sit outside the cap, and the EPCRS correction order if the limit is blown.
Form 5329 and the Missed RMD: How SECURE 2.0's 25%/10% Penalty Rules Work
SECURE 2.0 cut the missed-RMD excise tax from 50% to 25%, and to just 10% if the shortfall is corrected within a two-year window. Form 5329 is how taxpayers claim the reduced rate or request a full reasonable-cause waiver, and the form also starts the IRS's three-year limitations clock.
Saver's Credit 2026: The Last $1,000 Tax Credit Before SECURE 2.0's Saver's Match
Tax year 2026 is the final year for the Saver's Credit, a nonrefundable credit worth up to $1,000 per person ($2,000 MFJ) for IRA and 401(k) contributions. This guide covers the 2026 AGI brackets, Form 8880 line by line, and what changes when the Saver's Match arrives in 2027.
The $6,000 Senior Bonus Deduction: How Taxpayers 65 and Older Can Cut Their 2026 Tax Bill (Through 2028)
The OBBBA's new $6,000 senior bonus deduction (up to $12,000 per couple) phases out at 6% per dollar of MAGI above $75,000 single / $150,000 joint and disappears entirely at $175,000 / $250,000. Available for tax years 2025 through 2028, stackable with the standard deduction and itemized deductions for taxpayers 65 and older.
529-to-Roth IRA Rollover Under SECURE 2.0: Turning $35,000 of Unused College Savings into Tax-Free Retirement Money
A practitioner's guide to the SECURE 2.0 Act's 529-to-Roth IRA rollover — the five hard rules, the $35,000 lifetime cap, the state-tax traps in California, Indiana, and Massachusetts, and five strategic plays for converting unused college savings into tax-free retirement money.
529-to-Roth IRA Rollover Under SECURE 2.0: Turning Unused College Savings into Tax-Free Retirement
SECURE 2.0 lets families roll up to $35,000 of unused 529 funds into the beneficiary's Roth IRA tax-free. Here are the six rules every rollover must satisfy, the two mistakes that turn it taxable, the state-level traps, and the four strategies that make the rule genuinely useful.
Mandatory Roth Catch-Up Contributions in 2026: Why High Earners Over $150,000 Are Losing the Pre-Tax Choice
Beginning January 1, 2026, SECURE 2.0 forces employees with prior-year FICA wages above $150,000 to make 401(k) catch-up contributions on a Roth basis—$8,000 standard, $11,250 for ages 60–63—with no pre-tax option. Here is exactly who is affected, what it costs in real dollars, and the steps to take before the first paycheck of 2026.